Symbolic Arts: The Effect of Movement and Drama upon the Oral Communication of Children in Grade Two.

Norton, Natalie Joyce

The purpose of this study was to investigate the symbolic languages of movement and drama in terms of their ability to stimulate and expand the oral communication of children in grade two. Included was a substudy to determine the effect of such a program upon the self-actualization of children in grade two. The oral language was studied qualitatively in terms of a rating of fluency, flexibility, originality, elaboration, and coherence, and quantitatively in terms of number of words and number of sentences. The substudy of self-actualization used descriptive data to note any changes in self-perception, interpersonal relationships, and attitude toward curriculum and learning. Some general conclusions resulting from the study are: The language program stimulated and expanded the quality and quantity of fluency in oral communication; flexibility and originality of oral communication was stimulated by the experiences in movement and drama; and the language program expanded the coherence of oral language. An examination of the descriptive data showed students expressed an increased interest in all curriculum and learning experiences and the experimental groups were found to have the greatest tension (yelling, hitting, competing) index and the highest cognitive growth. (Author/RB)